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July 27, 2015

The Department of the Metro has completed its review and signed the contract for the construction of line 2 of the Metro with a consortium led by Norberto Odebrecht of Brazil and Spain's FCC Construction.

The contract will be now sent to the comptroller for verification.It calls for the system to be extended from San Miguelito to Tocumen and to be completed in 44 months. The cost is $1.8 billion.The contractor must post a bond of $310.7 million.Line 2 will be 21 kilometers and have 16 stations.

July 08, 2015

The exchange of oil or natural gas for the millions of dollars that Venezuela has not paid Panamanian companies being "among the options" to resolve the issue, said today the Panamanian Vice President and Foreign Minister Isabel De Saint Malo de Alvarado .

"All options are on the table," said the vice president, while Venezuela has repeatedly stressed that given "signs of a firm and strong commitment to resolving the situation."

"The deeper issue, which we have already been working, is how those currencies are made available,"

Panama is willing "to seek other more creative options that make the Venezuelan government easier to make available these currencies,"

Will be built approximately 500 meters from the current Bridge of the Americas and will connect Albrook and the corredor Norte and will have the capacity to hold the 3rd line of the Metro System which will unite Albrook and Arraijan

More brings more - Soon we will see how these projects affect the Real Estate surrounding the areas of interest.

June 22, 2015

Even the sound of your own footsteps as you walk in nature tells you something....

Everyday we should come in contact with nature at some point.

This contact creates a vital relationship for our "inner body" with the "natural body" that we inhabit. When we contemplate nature and listen to her, we are nurtured by her. When we hike outdoors, be it in the forest or mountains, we can see the colors of the stones, plants, trees and animals and we are revitalized with energy and vitality by them.

We feel different. We are different.

We would be more sensitive to natures call if we were to become less engulfed in our own internal dialogue. Human beings need to be less complicated, to take care of its main feelings and pick up the senses that come from the environment that surrounds us.

All the energy that mother nature God has given to us, come through our senses, and when we contemplate it we nurture from her. The melody of natural life helps us find our own interior harmony. And our own HEALTH is closely related to the harmony and natural rhythm. When the rhythm is lost or changed, sickness and disharmony states appear. Doctors, mystics and religious people, ecologists and human study scholars, from the west and east, have expressed their preference for contemplating nature.

Hoteliers do not rule out in the coming months that layoffs will be made, there is even talk of closing and embargoes.

Although tourist arrivals grew at an annual rate of 4.5% since 2012, this increase was not sufficient to absorb the oversupply of rooms.

This difference has made the average rate fall since 2013 to date some $37. In the market you can find rooms for $60, which a year ago was trading at $150. During the last three years the number of hotel rooms grew 209%, but the number of tourists increased only 48%.

This reality must add that Panama does not have an international promotion strategy since 2012, when the contract with the agency BB&M expired.

Since then, Panama has disappeared from the radar of tourists and international operators. Due to the low occupation that has begun to affect profitability, there are hotels that have cut services they offered, like free internet and buffet. In the management aspect at least three hotels have rotated staff to reduce operating costs.

Currently, in the capital city there are more than 18 thousand hotel rooms, and there are still entering the market by a thousand rooms. "There are hotels that are red due to the price war that has caused the oversupply of rooms," Sara Pardo (President of the Hotel Association of Panama said)

Although nothing is confirmed, there are at least 15 hotels are in the closed or have been offered for sale due to losses in recent years. "Nobody wants to accept that it is in crisis, but the fact is that there are hotels going through a bad time," she said.

* It is estimated that during the months of June, July and August hotel occupancy in the capital city will be below 50%.

Employers surveyed warned that there are hotels at risk of being seized by banks in the coming months because they have not made the payments financing for its construction.

Despite the low prices of the room benefit the Panamanian consumer, the fact is that the hotel industry was not designed for the local market. Between 2008 and 2014 more than 1.3 Billion dollars was invested in the construction of new accommodation establishments. 80% of investment is concentrated in the province of Panama, followed by Coclé, Chiriquí and Los Santos.

But the crisis in the hotel sector in the capital city is affected with an occupancy of only 40% in June, to the list of problems the division between industry players and the differences between guilds is added and Tourism Authority of Panama (ATP). Following criticism by the perceived slowness in the management of the ATP in the last 12 months, the administrator of the institution, Jesus Sierra, convened a meeting with businessmen involved in tourism last Thursday. At the presentation held without the presence of the media at the request of Sierra, it was indicated that in the second half of the year set aside $12 million to promote the country in markets like the US, Mexico, Brazil and Colombia.

Of this total, about $ 8 million already committed to contracts with media such as CNN, and to develop a digital marketing campaign.

It was also announced that is still under review the specifications of the tender for the advertising to be responsible for the international promotion between 2016 and 2019. The tender was conducted at the beginning of year, but not the details of the process are known and all that has been said is that investment in promotion in the next four years will exceed $100 million. This year the budget for promotion and marketing is $11 million, of which 3% was executed until 31 May. Sierra said that reports the performance is low because the institution pays the end of the contract, but said they have been working. Differences During the meeting the representatives of the Panamanian Chamber of Tourism (Camtur) and called for concrete results Apatel to increase tourist arrivals, while Sierra urged patience and avoid alarmist comments and hallway.

"Many people now criticizing our management were in the National Tourism Council (NTC) in the past government and kept silent about the things that were done," he said

Although Sierra did not mention names, the president of the CNT, which is the board of the ATP, between 2010 and 2014 was Jaime Campuzano, current president of Camtur.

After criticizing the leaders of the tourism associations for not informing its members about the work of his office, Sierra said it is important that the private and government sectors to work together, and said it would set aside any "attitude" to achieve the best results for the country.

Tour operators who participated in the meeting criticized the leaders of the unions not to allow the entry of new members and said that they have no financial support to bring tourists as well as receive other companies. They said there are hotels that offer lower prices than the tour operators prices, a situation that was described as unfair by the administrator of the ATP, who criticized the fact that some hoteliers do not respect the price agreed with operators to sell their rooms.

Meanwhile, entrepreneurs took the opportunity to question the ATP has not answered letters sent to international tourism wholesalers interested in bringing groups of visitors on charter flights.

Apatel president was emphatic in saying that the hotel industry is not seeking a grant from the State to resolve the current crisis, and stressed that all he asks is that we take swift and concrete measures to increase the country's promotion actions. He noted that as the hotels in the capital city are in the red, the interior operate with an occupation that does not exceed 30%.

He warned that rates continue to fall, a situation that threatens to small hotels and tour operators that may not continue to compete under these conditions.

During his speech, the president recommended that the ATP and Camtur work hand in hand with the private sector, but also called speed in execution. A high percentage of hoteliers believes that 2015 is already lost and its projections for 2016 are equally negative. Guild feeling is that the low occupancy rates and the war will continue at least until 2018 and considers that everything depends on the creativity of the industry and the authorities to promote the country.

June 17, 2015

Most beach hotels and the City have only 30% of their rooms occupied, so they have trouble paying their taxes until, say the actors in the tourism industry.

The temporary closure of the Pearl Hotel Playa Blanca by lack of occupation, which left some200 people unemployed , highlights the crisis that is currently facing the country's tourism industry, a situation that has been exposed by different business associations in the country.

Although the hotel has not yet submitted a statement about his decision, sources close to the sector as Ursula Kiener ensure closure.

Sara Pardo, president of the Panamanian Association of Hotels (APATEL) , said he called the hotel to verify the closure decision and what he was told was that "when they were ready to make an announcement would." However, if you call the resort to make a reservation is being informed those concerned that no reservations made ​​for after June 30 and is temporarily closed.

Kiener said the reason for the closure is the lack of hotel occupancy , situation facing most of the beach hotels and city, which have 30% of their rooms occupied, so they have trouble paying their taxes up .

In late 2008, the project Panama Pacific was in its infancy in an area of 410 thousand hectares, logistics and residential center would be developed with a vision of 40 years. Six and a half years later, 230 companies from various sectors have been established there, currently employing some 7000 workers directly.

Kardonski Henry, general manager master developer, London & Regional Panama , said yesterday that they have invested some $ 450 million in infrastructure of the company.

So far, he added, it has developed about a third of the master plan. In this regard, he explained that the industrial and logistics has evolved by 35%, the office between 15% and 20% and residential area around 25% and 30%.

In this area, there are companies in industries from high-tech manufacturing, marine services through technology. The latter, along with attracting pharmaceutical companies, are two areas in which the agency expects further growth in the medium term.

Of all established companies, nearly 40% are Panamanian.

For his part, Leonardo Gonzalez, Administrator Panama Agency, an autonomous state agency created in 2004 Pacific confirmed that the project contributes to the gross domestic product of about a billion dollars a year.

RECOGNITION

The Panama Pacific Special Economic Area was recently recognized by Site Selection magazine as "the best agency to attract investment in Latin America and the Caribbean 2015".

According to the publication, this joint project fruit of a public-private partnership joined the most points at a rate of seven basic criteria. These are: professional answer to queries of investors, vast knowledge and linguistic diversity of employees, better information on expectations of time to process permits and better reputation for protecting the confidentiality of investors and better reputation for aftercare services.

Another regional agency that was recognized by the magazine was the Colombian Invest in Bogota .

It is decided now, a new giant infrastructure project is about to emerge in Panama, this will be the fourth bridge over Panama Canal.

The construction period is estimated in three and a half years. The public tender will be announced in the second half of 2015. The expected cost of the construction of this new bridge is between $ 1 – 1.5 billion.

Such infrastructure projects as Canal Expansion, new international airport are the major influence on growing Panamanian economy.